- Title: ECB's Draghi calls for euro zone stimulus to boost investment
- Date: 1st October 2019
- Summary: ATHENS, GREECE (OCTOBER 1, 2019) (REUTERS) ***WARNING: CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** VARIOUS OF EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK PRESIDENT MARIO DRAGHI WALKING IN ATHENS ACADEMY DRAGHI WALKING TO PODIUM VARIOUS OF DRAGHI DELIVERING A SPEECH (SOUNDBITE) (English) EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK PRESIDENT MARIO DRAGHI SAYING: "The most effective response, however, would be an investment-led stimulus at the euro area level. This would be the best way to achieve an efficient distribution of spending among euro area countries - and is a further reason why I have called for a euro area fiscal instrument. The agreement on the Budgetary Instrument for Convergence and Competitiveness is a step in the right direction, but it does not yet meet the necessary criteria in terms of size or of design." VARIOUS OF AUDIENCE LISTENING TO SPEECH (SOUNDBITE) (English) EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK PRESIDENT MARIO DRAGHI SAYING: "Whichever route is taken, monetary policy will continue to do its job. The latest decisions of the Governing Council have shown its determination in the face of a continuously weakening outlook for growth and inflation." DRAGHI ON PODIUM, AUDIENCE APPLAUDING DRAGHI WALKING DOWN FROM PODIUM
- Embargoed: 15th October 2019 19:54
- Keywords: European Central Bank Draghi Greece Athens Academy euro
- Location: ATHENS, GREECE
- City: ATHENS, GREECE
- Country: Greece
- Topics: Economic Events
- Reuters ID: LVA001AZ9PE13
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The European Central Bank's President Mario Draghi called on Tuesday (October 1) for euro-area-wide fiscal stimulus aimed at boosting investment, saying the latest steps in this direction are insufficient.
Draghi, who will be replaced by Christine Lagarde next month, was reinforcing his plea for euro zone governments to push the bloc's economy out of the doldrums, complementing the ECB's own ultra-easy policy.
"The most effective response...would be an investment-led stimulus at the euro area level," Draghi said in Athens.
Euro zone finance ministers are not planning any joint spending plan but they said last month they were ready to act if the economy took a turn for the worse.
Draghi praised a euro zone budget due to come into being in 2021 as "a step in the right direction" but he added it was insufficient "in terms of size or design".
He said public investments at a national level would also help. Citing an ECB study, Draghi said that raising productive public investment in Germany by 1% for 5 years could boost the economy by up to 2% and private investment by up to 2%.
But if that also failed to come through, Draghi reaffirmed the ECB's commitment to its own stimulus policies, which saw it announce new bond purchases last month and pledge to keep the money taps open for as long as needed.
"Whichever route is taken, monetary policy will continue to do its job," Draghi said. "The latest decisions of the Governing Council have shown its determination in the face of a continuously weakening outlook for growth and inflation."
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